Have you been told by your eye doctor that you need toric contact lenses or contacts for astigmatism? Well, how dare that mean ole man (or woman)!
Fret not, it’s not that big a deal!
Firstly, What Is Astigmatism?
If you’ve been told you have astigmatism, it is very likely that it’s been explained to you that your eye is shaped more like a football rather than a baseball. As much as I try to stray from this common explanation, I do often revert back to it because it’s easiest to picture and understand.
In essence, a round “baseball shaped” eye would require just one refractive power to correct its blurry vision. A “football shaped” eye, on the other hand, would require two different refractive powers to correct the short and the long end.
So, I normally like to say that you require two different prescriptions in each of your eyes, instead of just one for each of your eyes.
Although the Lens of the eye accounts for a part of your refractive power, the Cornea accounts for most of it. So, it’s mainly the shape of the cornea that determines how much astigmatism we have, rather than simply the shape of your entire eyeball.
Astigmatism Vs Toric Contact Lenses?
Here’s another common misunderstanding. Sometimes I ask if a patient has worn astigmatism contact lenses in the past, and they reply that they’ve worn toric contact lenses instead. And, the opposite response if I ask if they’ve worn toric contact lenses in the past.
Yes, they are all in the same. They’re just synonyms of one another in the optical world.
Astigmatism being so commonplace, manufacturers produce plenty of contact lens options for correcting it.
Because each astigmatism eye requires two different powers to correct it, an astigmatism contact lens has two different powers. Astigmatism contact lenses come in the same materials as regular spherical (one power throughout) lenses – soft and hard. Soft contact lenses are more commonplace today.
Types Of Toric Contact Lenses:
Astigmatism contacts are mass produced in just about every offering. When there are limitations in availability with uncommon prescriptions, there are often custom made options.
2-week disposable toric contact lenses
: most popular is the Acuvue Oasys for Astigmatism
Monthly disposable toric contact lenses
: popular options include Air Optix for Astigmatism, Biofinity Toric, Purevision 2 for Astigmatism
Daily disposable toric contact lenses
: popular options include Focus Dailies Toric and Acuvue 1-Day Moist for Astigmatism
Colored toric contact lenses
: Freshlook Colorblends Toric
Multifocal/bifocal toric contact lenses
: these are custom made; most common is the Proclear Multifocal Toric (can be ordered at discountcontactlenses.com)
Rigid “hard” Gas Permeable lenses
: hard lenses can usually be worn for at least a year, and you wear the same one pair for that length of time. They are custom made and ordered through your Optometry office. While not as common or as comfortable as your soft contact lenses, they are sometimes more beneficial for your vision with certain prescriptions.
*Note: there is NO one brand of toric lenses that are the best contact lenses for every individual. This is why you should definitely let your optometrist know if the initial trial pair of contacts you receive isn’t satisfactory, since there is likely an alternative.
Before I got my lasik surgery, I had to wear toric contact lenses myself. Since every brand of contact lenses is available to me, I went to town with all the options!
After all the trial and error, I personally preferred the soft Biofinity Toric from Coopervision. In my practice though, most patients enjoy the Acuvue Oasys for Astigmatism. As I said before though, there’s no one-brand-fits-all.
Best Place To Order Astigmatism Contacts Online?
Looking to find cheap contact lenses?
While you can always order your toric contact lenses through your local Optometry office, patients often venture the web to buy contact lenses online. And to be quite honest, it isn’t possible for my office and other local offices to compete with the prices of contact lenses online.
Beware though, the most familiar source online to consumers is 1-800-contacts, but their prices are FAR from the best on the web.
After comparing the prices of various astigmatism contacts among all the popular online contact lens stores, here’s my ranking of your best sources based on price:
Lens Direct tied with Contact Lens King
AC Lens
Discount Contact Lenses
1-800-Contacts
America’s Best Contacts & Eyeglasses
Have any lingering questions about Toric/Astigmatism contact lenses? Leave a comment below and I’ll try my best to answer!